The Flower Family

Caroline Crowley

The Cellar

By: Natasha Preston

Do you ever get that feeling when you know someone’s eyes are on you when you’re not alone in a room? Everyone feels unsafe at times but the question is whether or not you actually are. Summer Robinson is your average teenager, goes out with her friends on the weekend, goes on dates with her adoring boyfriend and has a loving, supporting family. One night Summer walked to meet up with her friends like she did every weekend. She got to the club and realized one of her friends ran off. Not thinking too much of this Summer and her friends split up to find their missing friend, as she ventured away she found herself in a nearby park. Summer was approached by a stranger with an awfully unsettling grin. He kept calling her Lily and tried to lure her in closer. Summer thought he simply had her confused with someone else, as she approached him to help explain her name was not Lily he snatched her and threw her in the back of his van. Summer fought back as hard as she could and cried hysterically feeling absolutely devastated and powerless. What was going through his sick and twisted mind? His name was Clover and he brought her into his basement and introduced him to the other girls. Rose,Poppy, Violet and now Lily, a complete “family” for Clover. Clover truly believes he is helping the girls and protecting them from the evils of the world.

Natasha Preston’s, “The Cellar” is a thriller that makes you want to turn the page. Although I haven’t finished yet, I do plan on it. “The Cellar” does contain mature content and is not for all audiences. If the idea of kiddnapping turns your stomach I do not recommend this book. My entire life being kidnapped has been one of my biggest fears, which drove me to read this book because although it is scary, it is fascinating at the same time. The book spoke to me in many ways. After only the first few pages I could relate to Summer immediately. Other than being kidnapped, we seem to live very similar lives. This comparison makes her story all the worse...I couldn’t imagine if that were me. Being kiddnapped is unfortunately a potential problem for children and teens these days. Summer herself said “I felt invincible because I was naive enough to think bad things only happen to other people” (61). This is extremely true with teenagers today. We never think that it will be us yet everytime we turn on the news we see a new lost child. The way Summer’s family and friends reacted to her missing is similar to the way mine would.

I enjoyed the way the author wrote this book. Preston did a phenomenal job setting up her chapters and narrators. Throughout the book the narrator changes and we get to hear different perspectives of the story. It is better to get more than one because Summer can only think so much, it’s so cool how we get to hear what the kiddnapper (Clover) has to say and how her friends and family feel. There are also flashbacks which combined with different perspectives help us put all the pieces together. Through imagery and descriptive details, Natasha Preston is able to make me feel all types of emotions. As I read I feel more and more sorry for her boyfriend Lewis and her family. An example would be when Lewis’s mother tells him “Honey, you need to sleep more she frowned looking over the dark circles under my eyes” (78). In my head I am able to picture Lewis’s tired face and the whole melancholy vibe of the family. I want them to find her too, I feel like I am with them helping them find her. Not only do I feel badly for Summer’s friends and family but also Summer herself. At one moment she explains how her “heartbeat clashed behind my ears” (24). That line itself gave me anxiety and is better than Preston saying “she was scared” because that would be a boring book to read. Overall I have really enjoyed this book and plan on finishing it.

Girl, Interrupted

Michelle Correia
Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen

What would you do if you were abruptly forced to be admitted into a mental hospital? Unfortunately, this was the case for a young Susanna Kaysen. She is admitted for borderline personality disorder and ends up staying at McLean Hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts, for over a year rather than the few weeks she discusses with her doctor at the beginning of the book. The entire book is Kaysen's scattered memoirs, typically during her time in the hospital. Susanna, along with fellow patients Georgina, Daisy, Lisa Cody, Polly, Cynthia, and Lisa Rowe find themselves causing trouble at the hospital, while learning more about themselves and each other.
Personally, I enjoyed the memoirs where actual events happened. However, there are some memoirs that just describe Kaysen's thought process and I didn't really enjoy these. They were so specific that I personally felt a little insane after reading them. While this was probably Kaysen's purpose when she wrote, "Which is worse, underload or overload? Luckily, I never had to choose. One or the other would assert itself, rush or dribble through me, and pass on. Pass on to where? Back into my cells to lurk like a virus waiting for the next opportunity? ... Endogenous or exogenous, nature or nurture - it's the great mystery of mental illness" (78) this was not a feeling that I enjoyed. I thoroughly enjoyed the memoirs with actual stories because the characters in this book are actually around my age and all have very unique personalities. It was interesting to read about how being a teenager is different, yet oddly similar when one is in a mental hospital. I enjoyed reading what it was actually like inside McLean because when I saw that this book was about a mental hospital in the '60's, I was a little nervous. Old mental hospitals have shown to be notoriously cruel. However, even though occasionally McLean didn't always have the ideal treatment options, it pleasantly surpassed my expectations.
Although the hospital wasn't horrible, one quote in that book that stuck with me was, "Every window on Alcatraz has a view of San Francisco" (6). While the girls were in the mental hospital, they were all too aware of what was going on in the outside world and the lives that they could be living outside the walls that surrounded them. Their stay at McLean went on to affect their job possibilities, and even major aspects of their future like relationships. Kaysen reveals this when she talks about a boyfriend she has sixteen years after her stay in the hospital. He doesn't understand mental illness and, "often attacked my character - that character once diagnosed as disordered. Sometimes I was too emotional, other times too cold and judgmental" (166). I think this book was a good read and it actually highlights what it's like for people who are admitted into these hospitals. I feel like people often ignore how they feel and what happens after they leave and this book really hones in on those topics. Overall, this book is worth recommending - specifically to people who are interested in psychology, sociology, mental health, etc. It's pretty entertaining and I enjoyed it.

Pig Dictatorship

Melannie Cano

Animal Farm

By George Orwell

Have you ever wanted to rebel against a higher authority? Maybe your parents, employer, or government? Mimicking Stalinist Russia, Orwell tells the tale of a farm with overworked, mistreated animals who hope to create a paradise of progress, justice, and equality. Mr. Jones, the farmer, lost a lot of money and began to neglect the animals. These include hens, rats, dogs, horses, a donkey and a raven. He drinks heavily which made him starve and torture them. The animals had enough of the poor treatment and kicked him out successfully. The first order of business was to change the name of the farm to Animal Farm. Then, they composed a set of rules. The pigs of the farm were the most intelligent and literate, “they could already read and write perfectly”(32). Due to many animals not being able to read and remember the Seven Commandments, the main slogan was “Four legs good, two legs bad.”

The pigs asserted leadership in the farm due to their intelligence. Snowball dominated authority but I think he was a good leader. He inspired the animals by teaching them the song "Beasts of England." They loved the song. As the animals maintained themselves over months, Napoleon slowly began to manipulate the rest of the animals. He kicked out Snowball and framed him as a betrayer working with other human farmers. He would make rules that guaranteed them the best treatment because it was necessary to keep them healthy to lead the farm. Though, some animals were harder to convince. Boxer, the horse, often questioned the rules made by Napoleon. Yet, it wasn't enough because the pigs used fear tactics to instill obedience in them. For example, when the pigs made the rule that they would receive the apples and milk. Squealer, a young pig, explained to the other animals: “Comrades! You do not imagine, I hope, that we pigs are doing this in a spirit of selfishness and privilege? Many of us actually dislike milk and apples...It is for your sake that we drink that milk and eat those apples. Do you know what would happen if we pigs failed in our duty? Jones would come back!”(35).

I have not yet finished the text in its entirety, though I can say it’s not one of the best books I’ve read. I want to finish it because I’m curious to find out how the Animal Farm will end up. I have a feeling the farm will evolve into a totalitarianism society. I appreciate the humorous and satirical aspects of the book; they make it more enjoyable. I prefer mystery and realistic fiction, which is why this book didn’t appeal to me more. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in reading a story mocking the events of the Russian Revolution. I would also recommend Animal Farm to people who like to take away a message from a book; this one, particularly, still applicable even today. I will update when I’ve read the fate of the Animal Farm!

Living with Androids

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

By Philip K. Dick

Michelle Wong

What would a world where you couldn’t tell the difference between a human and an android be like? What if your best friend was an android all along? How could you ever trust anybody ever again? Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? makes you contemplate these questions and more. This book was also the inspiration for the movie Blade Runner. Humans weren’t the only living beings replaced by robotic hollow husks, animals were replaced by robotic versions of themselves as well.

One of the main characters, Rick Deckard, owns an electric sheep because real animals are extremely expensive and his real sheep died of a disease. People in this novel own animals to make them feel human. In a world where your neighbor could be an android, having an animal helps you to convince not only others but also yourself that you’re human and not a heartless robot. Personally, I love these kinds of story that question our existence on Earth. Existential questions that this novel brings up ironically provide me life. Imagine finding out someone you’ve known since forever was an android. How would you react, what would you even do? Just because they’re not human does that mean you can’t be friends anymore? If that’s the case then can we as humans coexist with androids? If that becomes a reality then what use is there for humans? Are humans just useless in the end? Technology is advancing quickly and these questions should be answered soon. Androids will become so human-like that the difference between a human and an android would be virtually indistinguishable.

In the novel, another main character by the name of John Isidore works as the person who transports sickly electric animals to get them fix. Isidore and Deckard are foils of each other. As Rick's foil, Isidore has several traits that Rick doesn’t have yet, one most importantly being empathy. Empathy for all living things, even androids. I’m currently at the part we’re Isidore can’t stand the realistic cries of an electric cat. Even though Isidore knows the cat isn’t real, it’s writhing and whimpers in pain as is acts as if it’s dying cause Isidore to become extremely uncomfortable and thinks, "Even though I know rationally it's faked the sound of a false animal, burning out its drive-train and power supply ties my stomach in knots"(72). As for Rick’s encounters with androids, his job is to exterminate them and is disgusted when he meets Rachael who is an android. Isidore also met Rachael and instead of being disgusted he treats her like a human. Isidore doesn’t find out that she isn’t human even when Rachael acts a really suspicious. Instead, he holds his hand out to her asking her if she wants any help. That’s where I’ve read up on and I’m really enjoying the novel at the moment. I can’t wait to read the rest and question my life as a human being.

The Darkness Takes Control

The Darkness Takes Control

By: Jeff Vega

“Dark,” by Kenji Jasper is about young adult Thai Williams who seems to have his life all planned out. He has his college picked out and ready to start his path into success, he has his beautiful girlfriend by his side no matter what, and his friends are all still in close connection with him with a strong bond. But all that changes as soon as he walks in on his girlfriend having sex with another man, Nick. Before he has time to react, Nick jumps out the window. Thai breaks up with his girl, but cannot stop thinking about Nick in his bedroom with his girlfriend. It begins to eat him up from the inside, and he feels he needs a form of justice. His boys are all violent members of a street gang, and they want him to take Nick’s life. Unlike his friends, Thai has never killed a man and has never really planned on it. He sees Nick at a party, and he just snaps. Thai chases Nick out of the party and tackles him, without hesitation, he shoots Nick in the head, killing him instantly. Thai is now on the run, ducking police and anyone who might know about his crime. He leaves the city to live on his own, where he now starts to refer to it as “the darkness.”  It his way of saying how he has entered the world of a criminal, a murderer, a loner who has to disappear as if he never existed. As he begins to feel lonely,  he realizes that “after 19 years and 3 months, [my boys] had finally brought me into the dark.” (pg.13)

I have yet to finish the book, but I can admit that i could not drop the book once i begin reading it. Kenji Jasper does an excellent job with making the book relatable to my life as a highschool student. Now, I don't mean that because i have killed a man, but by the language he uses in the characters dialogue.  Thai and his boy curse like nothing, which is how my friends and I speak with each other. On page 79, Thai and his best friend E have a discussion about how E’s mom had left him and came back 12 years later. Thai asks “ Your ass wasn't mad that she left you for 12 years?  She got up and walked out ya house wit’ your ass on the floor playing video games?” this quote reminds me of arguments my boys and i will have with each other, serious or not, this is a great example of the word we use with each other. I would recommend this book because it is never just full on narrative, which many like myself find extremely boring. It keeps the reader engaged with dialogue that i find myself laughing at out loud every now and then. It is an easy read, yet suspenseful whereas you never know what is going to happen next.